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Elena Fortunati^1*, Francesca Luzi¹, Chiara Fanali², Laura Dugo², Maria Giovanna Belluomo², Luigi Torre¹, José Maria Kenny¹, Luca Santi³, Roberta Bernini³
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, No.2, pp. 81-95, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2016.634132
Abstract Hydroxytyrosol (HTyr), a biophenol found in extra-virgin olive oil or olive oil by-products, well known for its strong antioxidant activity, was used as active ingredient for poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) matrix to develop film formulations by solvent casting process. The effect of HTyr on the morphological, thermal stability, optical, mechanical and release properties of PVA were investigated, while water absorption capacity, migration with food stimulants, water vapor permeability and antioxidant properties were tested taking into account the final application as food packaging systems. Morphological investigations evidenced homogeneity of all PVA/HTyr films, while the presence of HTyr More >

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ARTICLE

Purnendu, Soumitra Satapathi^*
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, No.2, pp. 96-102, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2016.634134
Abstract Graphene-based 3D porous xerogel was designed through molecular self-assembly of graphene oxide on chitosan matrix and its application in removal of different heavy metal ions from wastewater was investigated. The synthesized xerogel was characterized through FTIR, SEM, XRD and BET surface area analysis. Heavy metal ions, including Pb(II), Cd(II), and Hg(II), were removed from wastewater using this graphene-chitosan (GO-Cs) xerogel and the removal efficiency was monitored through inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The effect of GO-Cs composition and pH on adsorption efficiency as well as the kinetics of adsorption was studied in detail. The More >

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ARTICLE

F. Luzi¹, E. Fortunati^1*, A. Jiménez², D. Puglia¹, A. Chiralt², L. Torre¹
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, No.2, pp. 103-115, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2016.634135
Abstract Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) based nanocomposites reinforced with 1 wt% of surfactant-modified cellulose nanocrystals (s-CNC) extracted from Posidonia oceanica plant waste and zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) at different concentrations (0.1 and 0.5 wt%) were prepared by solvent casting process. Their thermal, morphological, optical, mechanical and water vapor permeability properties were investigated. Tensile testing showed increased values for strength and deformation at break in PLA based formulations reinforced with s-CNC and ZnO NPs as a consequence of better nanofiller dispersion compared to binary films reinforced only with ZnO NPs. Moreover, the effect of s-CNC and ZnO More >

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ARTICLE

Mohamed Ammar¹, Ramzi Khiari^2,3,4*, Mohamed Naceur Belgacem^3,4*, Elimame Elaloui¹
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, No.2, pp. 116-123, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2016.634136
Abstract The present study investigated the preparation of biomatrices from Stipa tenacissima L. and its valorization for fiberboard application. Resins were produced by extracting lignin from the Stipa tenacissima L. black liquor by soda process and combining it with glyoxal as crosslinking agent to produce lignin-glyoxal-resin (LGR). The matrix was characterized by several methods, such as FTIR and ATG/ATD, and then mixed with date palm rachis as reinforcing fibers in different proportions of 30 and 50% (w/w with respect to the matrix) to produce biodegradable composite materials. Then, their thermal and mechanical properties were determined, using More >

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M. Himabindu¹, K. Kamalakar², MSL Karuna², Aruna Palanisamy^1*
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, No.2, pp. 124-131, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2016.634137
Abstract Rigid polyurethane biofoams were prepared from karanja polyol which was derived by ring-opening reaction of epoxidized karanja oil. The polyol, which had a hydroxyl value of 186 mg KOH/g, was thoroughly characterized and the structure confirmed by spectral techniques. The foam formulations were developed to achieve shrinkage-free foams with water used as the blowing agent. The resulting foams were characterized for their mechanical properties like density, compression strength and flexural strength. The densities and mechanical properties, such as compression and flexural strength, varied with the amount of methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) for a fixed amount More >

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A. Ramírez-Jiménez^1*, S. Hernández López¹, E. Bucio², E. Vigueras Santiago¹
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, No.2, pp. 132-144, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2016.634138
Abstract Epoxidized linseed oil (ELO) was synthesized and functionalized with propargylamine (PA) or 3-ethynylaniline (EA) and the products were crosslinked to obtain the diacetylene-functionalized epoxidized linseed oil polymers which were used as matrices in the preparation of the composites with multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). Electrical resistance at percentages between 4 and 20 wt/wt% of filler was measured and the percolation threshold was calculated, obtaining 1.2 and 1.7% for the composites with EA and PA respectively. Low critical concentration evidenced a good dispersion of the MWCNTs without necessity of any modification. The final products were used in More >

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1259

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A. Delgado-Lima, M. C. Paiva^*, A. V. Machado
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, No.2, pp. 145-153, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634104
Abstract Cellulose acetate (CA) is produced from a natural polymer and presents excellent properties, finding applications in a variety of areas. Unlike cellulose, CA is melt processable and may be molded into parts and formed into fibers or films. In this context, the production of conductive CA composites that may be processable and integrated into parts to provide specific functionalities is an area of increasing interest. The present work aims to prepare electrically conductive composites based on CA and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by melt mixing. The nanocomposites were produced with pure and pyrrolidine-functionalized nanotubes, using a More >

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1283

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Xiaoying Li¹, Xiaoan Nie^1,2*, Jie Chen¹, Yigang Wang¹, Ke Li¹
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, No.2, pp. 154-164, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634101
Abstract Cardanol, an agricultural by-product of the industrial processing of cashew, was used to synthesize epoxidized cardanol laurate (ECDL) plasticizer. The target product was characterized using FTIR, 1H NMR and 13C NMR. The plasticizing effect of ECDL substitution for petroleum-based plasticizer dioctyl phthalate (DOP) in soft poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) was investigated using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and mechanical testing, and compared to PVC incorporated with commercial epoxidized soybean oil (ESBO). When DOP was partially substituted by EDCL, there was a slight increase of 5% in glass transition temperature (Tg) and a maximum increase… More >

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